Alpengeist @ Busch Gardens Williamsburg | Coaster Reviews

Alpengeist: The F-22 of Roller CoastersFrom the first time I saw the ominous white lift high above the surrounding trees while on Loch Ness, I knew it would be a ride to remember. In my opinion, this is the king of the inverted roller coasters not just because of its height and speed, but because it delivers thrills with every ride. On inverted coasters riders are situated below the track in ski-lift style trains. I have to say I’ve grown to respect some of the more compact inverts out there, but Alpengeist is still the best.

First there’s the intimidating (almost 200′ tall) lift hill where you find yourself wondering when you’ll get to the top. The view past your dangling feet of the ground and even trees far below is pretty unnerving. After the lift hill you fly down an enormous swooping drop that puts the train on its way to breaking the sound barrier (at least it feels like it). Then an Immelman inversion so tall and smooth you can just barely feel the inversion, followed by a tall vertical loop with some great g-forces. And now you’re on the way to meet Loch Ness down by the Rhine River where you hit an extreme, sometimes rough, cobra roll featuring two back to back inversions. Next, you move through a mid-course brake run, drop out of the run with a little pop of airtime through a short themed tunnel and into a sweet zero-g roll. The roll is followed by a nice corkscrew and helix combination. The sequence after the brakes is one of the best around in my opinion.

Where some rides tend to peter out towards the end, this one delivers right up until your uproarious return to the station. So Alpengeist gets a rare 10 from me because: it’s a terrain ride (meaning it wasn’t just plopped down on a parking lot or some flat lot of land), it’s massive (over three minutes of ride time), it’s fast, it’s themed pretty well (with little touches many won’t even notice), and it’s relatively smooth. You may experience an occasional headbang, but it’s far from a head-bang-athon like all of those Mind Eraser installations all over the country. On top of all that it delivers thrills and gives you a unique experience. That’s a 10 in my book! Final Rating – 10 (Superior)

Alpengeist is rated ‘IN’ for Intense. It’s a 4 out of 5 on my Thrill Scale for of its height, speed, and loops.

What’s Your Take?
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